


Hiding Place

by moricat



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Boys In Love, Childhood, Childhood Friends, Childhood Sweethearts, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Eren Loves Armin, Hugs, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Nobody Loves Armin, Tight Spaces
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-21
Updated: 2017-03-21
Packaged: 2018-10-08 19:29:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,455
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10394436
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/moricat/pseuds/moricat
Summary: In which childhood Armin cries to Eren about his fear that his parents may not love him... short little blurb.





	

**Author's Note:**

> I’ve been depressed, emotionally unavailable, and have had writer’s/creative’s block all week, so this was just something therapeutic to get myself writing something again. I also just find baby Armin dealing with his flighty parents to be a rich unexplored area ;~; enjoy if you can

Eren ran through the busy streets of Shiganshina, racing to get to Armin's house before his mother's special freshly baked sugar cookies got cold. With dust clouds kicking in the air from his carefree feet, he finally danced onto the Arlerts’ property, which looked as ordinary as it always did. That boring looking house always amused Eren however because inside lived the most interesting person he'd ever known. Deciding rare freshly made sugar cookies were too urgent to wait for someone to answer the door, Eren took it upon himself to enter directly into Armin's room from the window. He quickly searched his pockets and pulled out his mother's errands list from yesterday and promptly folded it into a sturdy "key" to slip between the cracks of the window, flipping up the lock from the outside. He grinned cheekily to himself before inviting himself in with a swift climb over the windowsill, and glanced around the room for his mate. But before he could even speak Armin's name, he heard a low sobbing sound, oddly coming from the wardrobe by the wall. The worried child ran over and pulled the wooden doors open immediately, revealing the shadowed little blond boy sobbing quietly in its corner. "Armin?"

Armin looked up immediately and met Eren with his big wet doe eyes. "Eren?... I didn't hear you come in." he sniffled as he wiped his flooded eyelid. 

Choking up a little himself at the sight of Armin being so upset, Eren took it upon himself to crawl inside the wardrobe too, respectfully closing the doors behind him. The pair were illuminated only by the small crack of light coming in from the seams from the doors, which Eren was grateful for so he could see all the tears he needed to wipe away. "Armin, what's wrong? Why are you upset?" He asked worriedly, with a light tinge of anger for whatever/whoever hurt his best friend... 

Armin was silent for a moment, but decided long ago to never lie to Eren. He took a slow breath before saying his fear out loud. "I think... my parents don't love me... I don't think they want me..."

Eren couldn't fathom such a thing. "What? Armin, why on earth would you think that? How could anyone not want you?" he asked, placing a comforting hand on his friend’s shoulder. 

"I just don't think they do... When I tried to recall a time they'd said they love me, I just... couldn't think of one... And they've never said this but... they're always going on about what dreams they had and what plans they'd made in the past, but they couldn't go through with them because they had me... I seem to have ruined their lives..." Armin whimpered with a number of cracks in his voice as he went on. "And I'm not even any good to them... I come home with inconvenient scratches and bruises and scars and wounds every day because people hurt me and I won't fight back or run away. I'm a burden. And nothing more. Even my grandpa has better things he could be doing with what's left of his time but instead he's here taking care of me... I tried to ask my mom for help sewing my pants this morning and she said she's too busy doing everything else around here. Meaning I had no right to ask her for anything when I'm already taking up so much of their time and space..." he wept, brushing his finger over the gaping hole in the knee of his pants. "That's why I asked grandpa how to cut my hair by myself, so I wouldn't have to bother any of them about it anymore." He grit his teeth and brushed an angry hand through his bowl cut bangs, not seeing Eren's ever growing sympathy from beside him. "That's why I never ask them for hugs. I should be able to handle my struggles on my own. For all they've sacrificed I can't ask for anything from anyone because I already owe the world everything.” He clutched himself anxiously. “And yet I still feel like I need more... how selfish, no?" He concluded, clenching his shaking fists over his knees, his knuckles turning bone white in the small beam of light. He finally gazed sorrowfully into Eren's eyes through a curtain of shameful tears. "I'm so sorry, Eren... Forgive me for burdening you with this ugly talk..."

Eren's heart broke and tears of his own poured from his eyelids for the aching sight of Armin hurting like this. He wasted no time taking Armin's anxious hands in his, squeezing them to comfort him as he argued. "No, Armin, stop talking like that! You're not a burden, not in the least! You're smart, and cunning, and so brave! And so fun to talk to! Fuck anyone who says otherwise, you're nothing to throw away!" 

Suddenly in a grasp, Armin's eyes widened, realizing Eren pulled him into a warm hug. Eren's little arms always held him so tight whenever Armin gave him the opportunity. He couldn't fully understand it, really. Someone who hadn't even known him that long nor received anything in return for his voluntary protection of him, would hug him so tight any chance he was given. But though it puzzled him, the blushing Armin did hug him back. First gently, and then tightly, pressing his cheeks into Eren's shoulder with a warm snuggle while Eren's soft hushed crying could be heard over his own shoulder. 

Eren's quiet anger broke the short silence. "And if anyone says otherwise I'll show ‘em a thing or two. If anyone ever tells you you're a burden, I'll destroy them for you!"

What a promise... Armin blushed even more. What had he ever done to deserve such a caring friend? He held him even tighter. 

"And at... at the very least I'll hug you any time you need. If no one else ever will, you can still bet that I'll always have one to give you."

Armin pulled away to look at Eren for a moment, thinking someone like him must've been merely a figure from a dream. But Eren's eyes met his with sincerity and his somewhat ferocious teeth bared a big bright smile for him. Armin's body relaxed. He quickly threw his arms around him again, with his blush returning full swing, and his heart repeatedly screaming the words he just couldn't say out loud yet: _I love you, Eren. _I love you, Eren. _I love you, Eren. _I love you, Eren...____

"...Don't ever forget what I said, okay?" 

"Okay..."

"... _I_ want you in my life." he mumbled into Armin's neck, running his arms soothingly all over his best friend's back. "Forever and ever."

Armin finally smiled again. "...And I want you in mine. Thank you, Eren. I think I'm okay now." He beamed, wiping more of his tears with his sleeve as he pulled away. 

"Yeah? You ready to come out then?" Eren asked sweetly, swiping his thumb over Armin's eyelid to wipe away the very last remnants of his tears. 

He shook his head. "Mm mm..." 

"That's alright. We can stay in here then." Eren grinned, and settled himself beside his buddy. 

"Thanks... What did you come here for anyway?"

"Ah!" Eren quickly dug out his pouch of cookies, still warm in his pocket, and pulled one out for Armin right away. "Mom made sugar cookies! They're a special treat, so I wanted you to have one right away!"

Armin was so moved by Eren's kindness, he couldn't help blushing again as he accepted the treat and took a happy bite. 

"You like it?" Eren asked, taking a bite of his own cookie. 

"Mmmhm! Delicious!" He mumbled, trying to speak as politely as he could with his mouth full. He sniffled again, swallowed with a sigh, and softly crashed his head on Eren's shoulder. In this secret hiding place, away from the cruel world and alone with the warmth and beauty that was Eren, Armin felt truly at peace. 

Eren looked down at the blond head resting comfortably in his presence and held him close. This boy was definitely something special. Someone truly and endlessly special... And it was here that he swore to protect him with his life. And then maybe someday he would prove his own worth to Armin, so that Armin might stay with _him_ just like this forever and ever. It was funny to him, honestly. Here this boy was feeling like he was unwanted and unloved in this world, while Eren loved him with all his great young heart. And funnier still, he had only yet to discover just how much he really did.


End file.
